Pancake day!

My calendar squeals that it is Shrove Tuesday tomorrow. Where I came from, the day preceding Ash Wednesday is called "Martes de Carnaval" (or Carnival Tuesday) and everybody dresses up in fancy costumes. Sadly, Winter Carnival is not celebrated in the UK. Instead, I've been told British people eat pancakes to celebrate "Pancake Day"! 

It probably comes an Anglo-Saxon interpretation of the French Mardi Gras (or Fat Tuesday), referring to the practice of the last night of eating richer in calories before the Lenten season which begins tomorrow.

Apparently in United Kingdom and Ireland, people have the tradition of eating pancakes on the day, even though they might not eat pancakes AT ALL the rest of the year. Not the american pancakes, though. Pancakes in the UK are thing and crepe-like. A sweet pancake for breakfast, and a savoury option for lunch/dinner, why not? It is quick, cheap and easy to make pancakes, and everybody likes them! I might have some tomorrow. :)

This is what you need to make 12 pancakes:

• 225 gr flour
• 2 large eggs
• 600 ml milk
• 2 teaspoons of melted butter
• salt

This is how you do it: 

1.  Sieve the flour into a large baking bowl and add a pinch of salt. Make a well in the centre of the flour and add the eggs. Beat well until it's smooth and lump free.
2. Add half the milk and the 2 teaspoons of butter, and beat well. Add the remaning milk and stir.
3. Leave the batter to rest for 15 minutes
4. Lightly grease a pancake pan (or frying pan) with a little melted butter. Heaat until it is very hot and lightly golden.
5. Using a spatula, cook on the other side for approximately 30 seconds.
6. Slip the pancake from the pan onto a warm place. Cover the plate with a tea cloth and keep pancakes warm.
7. Add any ingredient that you like: nutella, cheese, jam..

 Original recipe: http://britishfood.about.com/od/pancakeday/r/pancakes.htm